I’ve been working my way through an excellent documentary about the phenomenon of non-Christians seeking God and being surprised by having visions of Jesus. This isn’t exclusive to Islam by any means, but this particular one focuses on the testimony of 5 people from the Middle East who were Muslims when they had a surprise visit from a decidedly Christian deity.
Enjoy!
(SPOILERS ALERT!)
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, it was the 80’s, and Kingdom of the Crystal Skull did not exist.
Instead, we had the original trilogy of the Indiana Jones movies.
The last of these movies was aptly titled, “The Last Crusade”. It was the (for a while, at least) last Indiana Jones movie, and a movie about searching for religious artifacts.
The movie climaxes in an iconic scene where Indy and “bad guy” must locate the Holy Grail (AKA the cup Jesus used at the Last Supper) from among a room full up cups. Bad guy, knowing very little about Christ, chooses the biggest, most expensive chalice in the room. The guardian of the Grail replies, “you have chosen poorly,” and bad guy dies. (Ok, that’s a really oversimplified version, but stay with me here). Indy says to himself – correctly – that Jesus was a carpenter’s son. Thus, Indy chooses the very simplest, most humble cup in the room. The guardian says “you have chosen wisely,” and Indy doesn’t die (and whether or not this is a good thing depends on how you felt about the Crystal Skull).
But that’s not necessarily correct, because the Grail never belonged to Jesus! In the Bible it clearly says that Jesus, who had given up pretty much everything He owned by this point in His ministry, asked a complete stranger for use of an already set-up room for this meal. Now, to put this in perspective, crashing a Passover meal is about like showing up at someone’s house at Thanksgiving to say that you and your followers have need of their spare room and entire meal. I don’t know who that guy was that lent Jesus the entire 2nd floor of his house and his entire 12-person meal, while he and his own family presumably sat in the kitchen eating sandwiches without plates, but that guy was AWESOME. Way to put God first.
So, getting back to Indiana Jones, we have no idea what the cups in the good stranger’s house looked like. They could have been plain, or, more likely, since he was able to spare food and room for thirteen spontaneous guests, they probably had at least a little swag going on.
So, if the day ever comes that someone invites you over to their house to watch a 20-year-old movie, you can pause it at the iconic climax, Google this entry, read it aloud, and feel confident in pointing out that Indiana Jones is not theologically accurate.
I never said this story had a really important point.
God Bless Ya,
Morgan Hart
(For the full account, read Matthew 26:17-19, or Mark 14:12-17, or Luke 22:7-14.)
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As with many families with small children, here we are this night of Good Friday, celebrating by just doing the things we would be doing any other day. Toys are strewn about, snack leftovers are on the table, and the TV is playing in the living room. As my kids fall off to sleep, I’m now the only one awake in this dark room, the sole spectator to the end of Return of the Jedi. As I watch Darth Vader and Luke’s dramatic lightsabre duel and Vader’s ultimate turn back to good, I find something in the film’s emotions calling my mind back to Christ. I remember a time many years ago, the same year that Star Wars: Episode III came out. I remember saying to myself, “Vader was looking for immortality through evil, power, and medical treatments…and he never found it…until he gave up his life to save Luke.” Something in the idea would not let me go, and before the year was out, I knew my heart was calling out to Christ. I was sensing something I would later hear and know more clearly from the scriptures: Jesus’ words “Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it.” (Luke 17:33)
That idea is at the heart of salvation. It was so important to Jesus that He repeated it 5 separate times in the scriptures, with an additional paraphrase in the book of John. While I no longer remember much of Episode III (after all, it’s been over 10 years now!), I vividly remember having that thought. And I absolutely remember, in the months that followed, giving up my own life of sin, losing it, dieing, and finding Christ alive in its place.
A lot of people worry about losing the meaning of Easter in all the commercialism and informality that surrounds it now. And these are valid fears. But I never let it worry me. I have found, in my own time, that Christ is very skillful at rescuing and bringing home the hearts that are searching for Him.
God bless you all, and have a very happy Easter.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES:
Luke 17:33, Matthew 10:29, Matthew 16:25, Mark 8:35, Luke 9:24, John 12:25; Luke 19:10.
For those without access to a Bible, many versions are available free online at Biblegateway.com.
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