John Lennon sung,
imagine there’s no heaven
it’s easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
imagine all the people living for today.
Lennon’s song ‘imagine’ offers a particular vision for life today. A vision of a life without God because he believes that the world would finally be at peace. The question we need to ask ourselves is if this is the story that will bring peace? Lennon’s song is just one of many stories offering such promises. Paul, in his letter to the Colossians, is appealing to them to listen that there is one, true story that delivers on such great promises. That story is about the King of the Universe, who is none other than Jesus. This Jesus story reimagines the entirety of our everyday lives. Writer Ivan Illich put it this way:
Neither revolution nor reformation can ultimately change a society, rather you must tell a new powerful tale, one so persuasive that it sweeps away the old myths and becomes the preferred story, one so inclusive that it gathers all the bits of our past and our present into a coherent whole, one that even shines some light into our future so that we can take the next step… If you want to change a society, then you have to tell an alternative story.
That’s what Paul is doing.
Our fall sermon series, “Life Reimagined through Jesus,” is a series on the letter to the Colossians. Paul is after our imaginations, so he is telling the story of Jesus' kingdom.... where we find that our everyday lives are significant and valuable. So join us this fall as we explore what it looks like to live within this alternative story as our lives are reimagined by the King of the Universe.