Jesus of Nazareth was a man who was limited to a certain time and space within history. He may have been the Christ, the Son of the Living God (which I believe he was), but he was nevertheless a man who experienced the same type of limitations we must cope with in our day. He could only be in one place at any particular time. He aged like all humans. He became hungry, thirsty, and tired. Unlike Superman, he could not fly faster than a speeding bullet, or leap tall buildings with a single bound, or stop powerful locomotives (or a hammer and nails). He spoke Aramaic and perhaps Hebrew and some Greek. There is some doubt as to whether he was literate. He could sweat both from hard labor and from fear (remember Gethsemane?).
In his resurrection existence he has entered a dimension where he is connected to every part of the universe.
But with his death and resurrection all of this changed. The Easter stories communicate a Jesus who is not subject to time and space limitations. He can be anywhere and everywhere, anytime and “everytime.” In his resurrection existence he has entered a dimension where he is connected to every part of the universe. His Spirit now permeates every part of creation. There is no time, place, or creature not connected to the Risen Christ.
This Risen/Cosmic Christ speaks and understands all languages. He feels from the inside out every pain and hurt, every joy and celebration, every fear and anxiety, every hope and dream. He is all colors and all races. He knows no geographical, political, or economic boundaries. In the words of Ephesians and Colossians, all things have been gathered up in him, things in heaven and things on earth. And in him all things hold together.
We spend a lot of time in our seminaries, Sunday school classes, Bible studies, and sermons trying to find and understand the Jesus of history. Such is a very worthy endeavor, for our faith is based on a historical event. God came in Jesus of Nazareth at a particular time and place. We should never neglect this anchor. I have spent considerable time in the last forty-nine years studying the historical Jesus because I believe our faith must be rooted in that specific incarnation which occurred two thousand years ago.
If he is not subject to time and space limitations and if he now permeates every part of creation, then surely we can locate him.
However, perhaps the church should spend at least as much time trying to find and understand the Risen/Cosmic Christ in our world today as it does the Jesus of history. If he is not subject to time and space limitations and if he now permeates every part of creation, then surely we can locate him. We can find him in our families and brothers and sisters in Christ, in the poor and the oppressed, in the marginalized and the outcasts, in playful children and vulnerable animals, in the beauty of a sunset and the heartbreak of a polluted river. We can find him in our neighbors, our friends, our enemies, and those who are different from us. And if we take the time, we can even find him in our own hearts.
The tomb could not hold him. And neither can our prejudices, fears, and agendas. In the resurrection God said, “You can kill my boy once but never again. He is here to stay. And so am I . . . everywhere and “everytime.”
