Nov 27, 2005 Advent 1 Template for planning
David Selleck Lakeside United Methodist, Muskegon, Michigan
Felt Need: What does Narnia have to do with my Christian Walk?
Hoped for results: To demonstrate how CS Lewis wrote about Narnia and how we can use the parallel of the Kingdom of God to help us on our spiritual journey. This first message is designed to give anyone an idea of the story and the parallels of the Gospel.
Message: The Land of Narnia
Scriptures: Mk. 4:30, Lk 17:21, Lk 22: 29-30, Lk 19:17, Rev. 11:15 (Selected)
Mark 30-35 Again he said, "What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? 31It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. 32Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade."
Luke 17:21-22 Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, "The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, 21nor will people say, ’Here it is,’ or ’There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you."
Rev.11: 15-16 And the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17saying: "We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty,
the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign.
Synopsis:
I Who is CS Lewis?
II What is Narnia?
III Who are the lead Characters in Narnia?
IV Narnia and the Kingdom of God and You
Metaphor: Door to Narnia
Video: Selected Narnia clips, of Narnia, and main characters
Music
Narnia Scenery Setup
Message:
The Land of Narnia
I Who is CS Lewis?
The Creator of Narnia: C. S. Lewis
by Ann-Marie Imbornoni
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C. S. Lewis, or Jack Lewis, as he preferred to be called, was born in Belfast, Ireland (now Northern Ireland) on November 29, 1898. Early Days
Lewis’s early childhood was relatively happy and carefree. There was also a library that was crammed with books—two of Jack’s favorites were Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson and The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett.
A Painful Loss
This somewhat idyllic boyhood came to an end for Lewis when his mother became ill and died of cancer in 1908. Barely a month after her death the two boys were sent away from home to go to boarding school in England.
An Oxford Scholar
In 1916 Lewis was accepted at University College, the oldest college (founded 1249) at Oxford University. Oxford, along with Cambridge University, had been a leading center of learning since the Middle Ages. Soon after he entered the University, however, Lewis chose to volunteer for active duty in World War I, to serve in the British Army then fighting in the muddy trenches of northern France.
Following the end of the war in 1918, Lewis returned to Oxford, where he took up his studies again with great enthusiasm. In 1925, after graduating with first-class honors in Greek and Latin Literature, Philosophy and Ancient History, and English Literature, Lewis was elected to an important teaching post in English at Magdalen College, Oxford. He remained at Oxford for 29 years before becoming a professor of medieval and renaissance literature at Magdalene College, Cambridge, in 1955.
Lewis the Writer
In addition to his teaching duties at the University, Lewis began to publish books. His first major work, The Pilgrim’s Regress (1933), was about his own spiritual journey to Christian faith. Other works followed that won him acclaim not only as a writer of books on religious subjects, but also as a writer of academic works and popular novels. The Allegory of Love (1936), which is still considered a masterpiece today, was a history of love literature from the early Middle Ages to Shakespeare’s time; Out of the Silent Planet (1938) was the first of a trilogy of science fiction novels, the hero of which is loosely modeled on Lewis’s friend J.R.R. Tolkien, author of the children’s classic The Hobbit.
Narnia
Initially when Lewis turned to writing children’s books, his publisher and some of his friends tried to dissuade him; they thought it would hurt his reputation as writer of serious works. J.R.R. Tolkien in particular criticized Lewis’s first Narnia book, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. He thought that there were too many elements that clashed—a Father Christmas and an evil witch, talking animals and children. Thankfully, Lewis didn’t listen to any of them.
Following the publication of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe in 1950, Lewis quickly wrote 6 more Narnia books, publishing the final one, The Last Battle, in 1956. Although they were not well received at first by critics and reviewers, the books gained in popularity through word of mouth. The Narnia books have since sold more than 100 million copies and are among the most beloved books of classic children’s literature.
The Final Years
After finishing the Narnia series, Lewis continued to write on autobiographical and religious subjects, but less prolifically. Mainly he was preoccupied with the health crises of his wife, Joy Gresham, whom he married in 1956 and who died of cancer in 1960.
After her death, Lewis’s own health deteriorated, and in the summer of 1963 he resigned his post at Cambridge. His death, which occurred on November 22, 1963—the same day President Kennedy was assassinated—was only quietly noted. He is remembered, however, by readers the world over, whom he has delighted and inspired for generations.
II What is Narnia
Narnia is a kingdom with good and evil, with creatures who are ordinary and strange beasts from mythological times.
III Who are the key players.
The key players in this drama is the White Witch who represents evil and has cast a spell over Narnia, turning it into perpetual winter and there is no Christmas. She is fearful of an old prophecy that says two sons of Adam and two daughters of Eve will one day rule the Kingdom of Narnia. Her mission is to thwart the prophecy by luring the children into her world and turning them into stone.
Aslan is the lion and represents God. The animals who are on the good side are all anxiously waiting for Aslan to return to Narnia and make things right. The four children Peter, Edmund, Lucy and Susan are brother and sisters. They eventually discover a Wardrobe closet that allows them to enter Narnia.
There are a host of other creatures that help make the story.
IV Narnia and the Kingdom of God and You
We as Christians have a deep felt hope for the Kingdom of God. The questions for us are, where, when, how does one enter the Kingdom of God? How does one know when he or she is there?
Sarah Arthur in her article ‘Walking through the Wardrobe in Good News magazine (November/December 2005) talks about the Kingdom of God and Narnia.
“The Kingdom of God. We see the phrase sprinkled throughout the pages of the New Testament, especially in the Gospel (the first four books). People sing about it in church. We hear it from the lips of Christians. But do we really know what it is? What sorts of roads do we take to get there? How do we know when we’ve found it?
It’s a topic Jesus was especially keen on. “How can I describe the Kingdom of God?” he asked the crowds gathered to hear him speak. “What story should I use to illustrate it?” (Mark 4:30). He used mysterious parables to spark their curiosity: The Kingdom is like a farmer; it’s like a treasure hunt, like a woman working yeast into some dough. It’s like a fishing net, a mustard seed, a pearl of great price found in the midst of everyday life, as close s your heart beat. Jesus said, “ The Kingdom of God is already among you” (Luke 17:21).
What? You mean; the Kingdom isn’t some magical place you can only reach if you know the right incantations or open the right closet doors? You mean it’s not some airy-fairy heavenly realm in the clouds? Nope. Instead, wherever God is acknowledged as Lord and King, that’s the Kingdom. Our universe itself was originally the perfect Kingdom, ruled by the creator who made it, but we humans on planet Earth have been in rebellion against the true King since the beginning of time. Then just when things were looking really hopeless, God sent his Prince, Jesus, into rebel territory to conquer evil and free us to be true citizens of the Kingdom again. We can choose to be his subjects or not-with just consequences either way. That’s the essential story we find in the Bible, and it’s the essential story at the heart of each of lives.”
This season as we move towards Christmas we will be looking at various aspects of this story and comparing it to our lives here on Earth. The Story is full of intrigue, mystery and at its heart is the Gospel message of light coming into darkness, good vs. evil, leading us to a baby born in a stable. Join us for the journey into Narnia and watch the sanctuary change the close we get to Christmas Eve...
