I’m not sure why I woke but I had a sense that something had happened with my phone. If it rings at 2:00am it is not for good news is my experience. I blearily looked at it and there had been no phone call but there was a text message from my bank thanking me for telling them of my new phone number. I almost went back to sleep thinking that if I had changed my phone details then I wouldn’t have received the text as it would have gone to my new phone! But then I sighed and checked my bank details and sure enough my phone number had been changed. I’m more awake now and call the bank and surprisingly the call, quite quickly, was answered by a person and I explain that I had received a text thanking me for my change of details but that I had no made such a change. I was transferred to major fraud squad and over the next 30 or so minutes my phone number was reinstated, bank accounts fully checked – no unauthorised transactions – but the bank was unable to tell me how the change of phone number happened. I thanked them for their service and went back to sleep.

The change of phone number might have been some sort of computer anomaly but my experience of living on this world tells me that the new phone number had a person with intention behind it and that intention was not my well-being. The recent cyber troubles of big business testifies yet again that there are people who are willing (happy?) to harm others to meet their own needs. We can describe wars similarly; in fact much of the misery people suffer can be described this way. I have described living as ‘relationships govern behaviour’ and thus sin is when my relationship with myself is most important. Of course a world in which everyone looks out for themselves is a jungle, a nightmare, fang and claw, and power is the ultimate determinate of who lives and dies. That is why people make alliances and form groups – families, tribes, countries, philosophies, political views, sociological views, religions – for the best life possible.

The resurrection reality doesn’t change this world’s environments – chemistry, physics, biology, life and death all remain – as does human nature. What is new about the resurrection reality is that the crucified and risen Jesus has entered – has been added to – this world and offers a new relationship in which to live in the jungle, nightmare, fang and claw, and power priorities! Our human nature can easily translate Jesus’ relevance or importance as determined by how we survive or take charge of or succeed in the jungle, nightmare, fang and claw – but that is just making Jesus all about power. The resurrection reality is about Jesus recreating us to be in him – ‘in Christ’ – but still living in this world. It is our relationship with him – the one he has created, the one he sustains through words, water, bread and wine – that now governs our behaviour – or least guides it or it is something we can return to – but it is no guarantee that we will have no trials and tribulations in this world.

I went back to sleep thanking God that what was probably something bad happening to me was stopped but as I dozed off I also thought that if the bad thing had happened then God would be with me to deal with it – his love hadn’t changed – and he would bring good out of everything for me. That is our resurrection reality.

GS