See your story

I recently read that in an ancient form of Chinese drama, plays were performed on a two-level stage. On the first level, the drama would unfold in the natural sequence of the script, while on the second level the last act of the play would be acted out simultaneously. This gave the audience a distinct advantage—they knew how the story would end. In fact, it was not uncommon for the audience to yell to the actors on level one, warning them their attitudes or actions were threatening the good outcomes of the final act of the play.

We, like audiences of those ancient Chinese dramas, have the distinct privilege of seeing the current and final acts of the play simultaneously. This is true on a global scale, as we see nations in turmoil, human machinations and strife - somehow this will end in the coming of Jesus’s new creation, restoring, transforming, and fulfilling God’s big story. We are called to see both levels of the stage simultaneously, often causing us to cry out ‘Come Lord Jesus!’.

However, it’s also true for our own personal stories. Our present existence, like the play on that lower level, runs in parallel with an awareness of the end story of our lives in Christ, the life to the resurrection, through the eschatological hope we carry within us by the Spirit amid the vicissitudes of our circumstances. This ought to give us an ‘advantage’ in living life in the present – we know the final act of our story, and it is of a certain hope of resurrection and life eternal. And maybe it ought to make us sometimes cry out about our actions in the here and now – see that end story (#insert your name here) – live up to and in light of it!