The Beauty of Spring, the Beauty of His Kingdom

"For behold, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone, the flowers have already appeared in the land; the time has arrived for pruning the vines, and the voice of the turtledove has been heard in our land." (The Song of Solomon 2:11-12)

This is a sign, for me, that spring is arriving in Sacramento. Some of my camellias bloom in the late fall, but when this one starts blooming I know that spring is very near. It has been blooming at the very end of winter for me for over twenty-one years. It was established before we moved here so I do not know its name. But as you can see it is very beautiful. As the days grow longer and, yes, the rains continue, the flowers will start turning brown with some kind of rot.

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But, although I sometimes, in the midst of its loss of beauty, think of cutting it down, I remember that once again in the very early beginning of spring it will bloom and bring joy to everyone who sees it. I think the Church is often like that. In some places weak and broken. In some places full of rot, as we all often are, but God continues to prune and care and we, the Church, all wait for spring.

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Which reminds me of C.S. Lewis' description of the golden kingdom of Jesus Christ. At the end of That Hideous Strength he gathers, in his writing, all the metaphorical pictures of different culture's ideals of a golden age to express the secret work of God's redemptive action. First Lewis writes of Arthur and the kingdom of Logres, in contrast to Britain, the worldly Britain. The plot of the story is that Britain has almost overcome Logres. He writes of those who have stood in that battle:

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"'You have done what was required of you,' said the Director. [whose name is Ransom] 'You have obeyed and waited. It will often happen like that. As one of the modern authors has told us, the altar must be built in one place in order that the fire from heaven may descend somewhere else. But don't jump to conclusions. You may have plenty of work to do before a month is passed. Britain has lost a battle, but she will rise again."

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But, after warning that the battle is not over, he goes on to write of that final time of spring when no longer will the worldliness of cultures undo the beauty of Jesus' Kingdom.

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"When Lorges really dominates Britian, when the goddess Reason, the divine clearness, is really enthroned in France, when the order of Heaven is followed in China--why, then it will be spring."

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"For it was the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, [Jesus], and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say whether things on earth or things in heaven." (Col. 1:19-20)