Covenantal Atonement

Most people think that the Narnia Series by C.S.Lewis begins with, "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, mainly because a box set came out which left out the 1st Book. The 1st Book in the series is "The Magician's Nephew", the Genesis of Narnia. There was a human present when Aslan was making Narnia, Digory the owner of the Wardrobe in the next book. When the 4 children told him about Narnia, he believed them, because he had been there!

During his adventures he had faced 2 ancient rhymes. In the Hall of Charn he succumbed to temptation - letting loose chaos, death and an evil power which follows him to Narnia in the form of the White Witch. Later in the book, he faces a 2nd temptation, at a garden with golden gates, there hangs a fruit, which the witch assures him could save his dying mother's life, - but if he takes it, it would break faith with Aslan.

In an agonizing struggle he resists temptation. As a result the apple he takes for Narnia "covers over" the cracks made in Narnia's innocence formed by the presence of the witch and holds her at bay for thousands of years. And instead of a stolen apple which would have given his mother a cursed life, Digory is given by Aslan, in grace, a new young fruit which heals her.

To understand the New Covenant that Jesus brought us, we have to go back to the beauty of our world's Genesis. God created a safe place for life to flourish by pushing darkness, swirling waters and chaos into controlled limits, which he held in place with faithfulness. He creates life in that safe space, which culminates at last in Him creating a child of sorts, formed in his image, with the ability to create as He does. God's aim was a relationship formed from love, and faithfulness, but humans betray God, fracturing that relationship. The betrayal goes far beyond the pain it causes God. The balance of Creation is rocked, a crack forms in the shield that holds chaos at bay, shame, death, destruction and chaos seep through into our world. This culminates after generations of human violence in the flood. But from the flood onwards there is a new element to the story: a Covenant or Treaty with God. Amazingly, God still loves us and makes us serious promises in the from of a Treaty, when he didn't have to do so. What does the term Covenant mean to you? Many in New Zealand would fully understand this concept because of the Covenant/Treaty of Waitangi. The Crown broke the Treaty of Waitangi betraying the Maori people of New Zealand and generations later had to acknowledge and pay for the serious wrongs and injustice they caused. As a Christian you are in a Covenant with God, think about that today.