Shadows, Darkness, and Dawn - 9780835810326

Pastor and Christian Century blogger Thomas Steagald takes readers through the ministry of Jesus with a special emphasis on images of light and darkness. Readers will move with Jesus from the gathering of shadows during the temptation in the wilderness into the terrifying darkness at Calvary and the hope of dawn on Easter morning. Six carefully chosen Gospel stories help readers examine their own shadows, their confessions whispered in the darkness, and the power of Christ's regenerating love to bring freedom from sin and the fear of darkness. Readers will stand with the woman at the well in the intense glare that reveals her alienation or they will scurry under cover of darkness with Nicodemus as he seeks answers from Jesus. Readers will become more than mere observers. They become participants in the story, understanding their own alienation, their own desire to be born anew. Ideal for small-group study or as a guide to individual contemplation, each of the six chapters offers an invitation to prayer and opportunity for reflection and self-examination. In this practice, readers are moved to notice the changing light in the seasons of the earth and the seasons of life, and to participate in the bringing of light to places of war, poverty, and despair in the world. Steagald reminds Christians that the ashes of Lent can be symbolically linked to the burnt offering of the Jewish Temple, the olah, which could even be offered by Gentiles. Though the motivation for the olah might be confession and a desire for atonement, the benefit of this act was understood to be a deeper intimacy with God. In the same way, pastors and small group leaders can find this study a way to help participants experience Lent as a time to offer prayer and grow into deeper relationship with God who rules over the day and the night.