Stop Living in the Shadows

I am amazed at how so many Christians spend so much of their time living in the shadows. No, I’m not talking about living in the shadow of the Almighty. That’s a good thing. I’m talking about living in the shadow or copy of heaven’s realities. And that’s a tragedy because Jesus came to this earth not only to take us to heaven one day, but to bring heaven and its realities to us here on earth right now.

In Colossians 2:16-17 Paul the apostle made reference to issues of food, drink, and special holy days. He insisted that these things are simply a shadow of things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. In other words, Paul was saying that all the Old Testament feasts, holy days, food regulations, and other laws were the shadow of a substance that casts the shadow. Jesus, the high king of heaven, is the substance. All of those things in the Old Testament point us to the substance which is Jesus.

If you see the shadow of an automobile, you can get an idea as to what that automobile is like. You can tell if it is large or small. You may be able to tell from the shadow if it is a sports car or a luxury car. You may even be able to tell if it is a Volkswagen Beetle or perhaps something like a Ferrari. Then when your Father tells you this automobile is yours, you begin to imagine what it will be like. You look at the shadow and anticipate the day when the substance will come. You even stand on that shadow and rejoice in the blessing. But when the day comes that your Father says, “Turn around, here are the keys, get into the car and drive it,” you really rejoice. But let me ask you, after driving that automobile around for a while, will you park it and go back to standing in the shadow and pretending that you have a car? Absolutely not. Once the substance comes you will never go back to the shadow.

Then why, I ask, do so many Christians live in the shadows? Why are we so focused on the things that make us religious but don’t really bring us deeper into Christ and into the reality of heaven? The result is that we end up with outward trappings that conform to the world’s idea of a kingdom and yet we are far from God’s kingdom–heaven invading earth.

The Old Testament saints were not satisfied with the shadow. Hebrews 11 tells us that the Patriarchs lived in the promise land as strangers. God had given them the land of Canaan, but they knew that it was not the real prize. The land they were looking for and desired was a better country, that is, a heavenly one. The Patriarchs had no choice but to live in the shadow, but they were not satisfied with it. They longed for the substance to which the shadow was pointing–heaven invading earth in the presence of the King.

God’s agenda is not centered in the land of Israel, or the city of Jerusalem, or what day you gather with the saints to worship, or what you eat and drink, or in any number of other things that make us appear spiritual. Jesus is the substance. Jesus is the focus of the Father’s plan. Come out of the shadows and step into the freedom that is Jesus Christ.