Reveal Week 3 - The Son who became a Slave

God took the worst thing that man could do to his Son, and transformed it into the best thing he could do for man. - Anonymous

Our journey to discover more of the Father has inevitably led us to a point of transformation. The cross of Christ. Discovering the nature of our adoption would always have led us to this point. It is, after all, the pivotal point in our journey from orphan to heir. Considering the cross is something we do on a regular basis as Christians; we sing about it regularly during worship, devote ourselves to it again at the communion table, and relive the moment that the world was truly changed during Easter. The majesty of what was accomplished at the cross and resurrection has not escaped our notice. But I wonder how often we have considered the Son who became a slave.

We all know about Jesus earthly ministry, and his life was testament to what God wanted to accomplish; our adoption as children of God. But how often do we consider what Jesus had to relinquish in order that we might be adopted; HIS position as a son of the King. How often have we considered what Jesus gave up in order to die the death of a slave for us?

During reveal this week we wanted to create a space for those who came to consider this fact. We had set up two rooms which we called throne rooms. Each had an empty throne, with a candle on the seat. Flowing fabrics decorated the area around the throne. Scented rose petals gave a beautiful aroma, scattered candles provided an ethereal  glow and the sound of angelic choral singing reverberated around the room. This was a simple, symbolic representation of the throne room of Jesus; the privileges he relinquished to become our saviour, and our brother. We gave each person the first part of a scripture, Philippians 2:5-7 and asked them to consider the sonship of Christ.

After a little while of consideration, we wanted to move the journey on. As we went into the throne rooms we said 'Ladies and Gentlemen, as we have considered the sonship of Christ, let us take you to the pinnacle on his slavery.' As the group made their way to the hall the were met with the cross. The room had scattered chairs, allowing each person some space to consider what Christ had done as he died the death of a slave.  We gave them the next part of the scripture, Philippians 2:8 and allowed them time to consider what Jesus had done, whilst there was a visual representation, a cross. The cross was draped in purple fabric, stones were scattered around it, and candles were lit. The angelic music continued in the background. We believe that in order for us to truly grasp our adoption, we must look at the way in which it came about. We had to look at what Jesus had given up. We had to realise that what he had before he came to earth, is what we have now entered into thanks to his sacrifice. We had to understand that his death was sacrificial in more ways than one. It is the pivotal point.

The end of the evening was the beginning of our next phase of discovery. We shared with the group that up until this point we have considered our journey from orphans to heirs, and in order to do that we have spent some time thinking, in different ways, about what our life was like before we were heirs. But that is the end of that. From this point on, we are living in the light of what Christ did for us. We are living in the truth that because of his sacrifice, we no are no longer considered orphans. We are to move into the mindset of heirs.

We wish to take the journey to the next phase; living as heirs in the kingdom of the living God. We are very excited about what this means to us. We are very excited about the ways in which we can explore this further. We hope you can continue to join us as we journey deeper into understanding our adoption, and our loving, gracious Father who accomplished it all for us.